


Confessions

by LastCorsair



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:20:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26294776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LastCorsair/pseuds/LastCorsair
Summary: A confession from Blake leads to one from Weiss. Where they will go from here is yet to be seen.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Weiss Schnee
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

Ruby sighed. Lately, Blake had been flinching and keeping her distance from Weiss a lot, and it was getting worse. Just now, in sparring practice with Team JNPR, Blake had pulled away from Weiss, leading to her getting knocked flat by Jaune of all people. While Jaune had gotten better by leaps and bounds since they'd started at Beacon, there was still no way he should have hit Blake so easily. Jaune himself had been so startled he'd stopped dead in the middle of the fight, leading to him getting knocked flying into a wall by Yang. "Okay everyone, team meeting time. Dorm room, now. And I mean _everyone_ , no excuses," she added, giving them all her best glare. Normally this would have been cute and endearing, but this time it had teeth and claws.

Up in their dorm room, Ruby stood just inside the door, hands on hips, still glaring at everyone. She glanced at Yang, and then jerked her head toward the open window. Without a word, Yang got up and closed it, then leaned back up against one of the dressers. "Alright, let's talk about the Golaith in the room, shall we? Blake, you've been off lately. For a while after... that night on the docks, everything was fine. But the last couple of weeks, your concentration has been slipping. You've been flinching away from Weiss, and this morning it got you floored. By _Jaune_ , of all people. Jaune. So what's eating you? Why are you so uncomfortable around Weiss all of a sudden?"

Blake fidgeted, glancing around for an exit. Ruby in front of the door, bathroom door closed, Yang standing guard at the window. She was well and duly trapped. "N-nothing's wrong, Ruby."

"Nonsense." Weiss stood up and took a step towards Blake. "Yesterday, I tossed up a glyph for you, and you avoided it. I _noticed_ , Blake. It was perfectly placed, and you didn't take it. Is something wrong? Is it something I did, something I said? You told us everything about your time with the White Fang, right? 'No more secrets' you said. Talk to us, we're you're teammates. And I'd like to think we're friends. No matter what it is, we won't judge."

Blake hesitated. No, it was nothing Weiss had _done_ , exactly. "I-I can't, not this."

Weiss bent down to Blake's eye level, and she could see something in the heiress's eyes she hadn't ever expected to see there. _Concern_. "Blake, tell me. Or else worrying about it is going to throw me off as well, and then I will be absolutely _furious_ with you."

When Weiss looked at her like that, Blake couldn't help herself. "Ihaveacrushonyou," she blurted out, then cringed, waiting for the reaction.

"Did she just-" Yang started, stopping immediately under a glare from Ruby that could have leveled small villages, Like, say, Vale. But it was Weiss's reaction Blake was dreading as she peered at Weiss out of the corner of her eye.

"I see." Weiss took a step back from Blake, her arms crossed. "Well, then, what do you intend to do about that?"

"N-nothing, I-I can't, you're Weiss _Schnee_ , and, and I'm a F-F-"

"Stop. Listen to me very carefully. I am not my family name, nor my family's company. Right here, right now I am just Weiss, a girl you have just confessed your feelings to. And you are not a Faunus, or a former member of the White Fang. You are just Blake, a young girl who has just confessed her feelings to someone. So I ask you again, what do you intend to do about that?"

"W-wait for you to respond, I suppose. M-maybe ask you out on a date?"

Weiss raised her left eyebrow, pulling on her scar, as if to say _Well, I'm waiting._

"Uh, woudlyougoliketogoonadatewithme?"

"Say that again, less uncertainty, more enunciation, and pause between the words."

Why was Weiss torturing her like this? She knew Weiss was a bit cold, but _cruel_? Fine. "Would you like to go out on a date with me, Weiss?"

"Yes. Anything specific in mind?"

"S-spend Saturday afternoon together in Vale? Lunch, maybe a movie, or some shopping?" Blake drooped. "I don't have a lot of money."

"That would be acceptable. But I do have one stipulation. Lose the bow. If I'm going out on a date with you, I want a date with _you_ , not that. You can wear it until we reach Vale if you like."

"Okay. But you have to wear your hair down."

Weiss reached up to touch her ponytail. "What's wrong with my hair?"

"I... like the way you look with it down."

It was Weiss's turn to look uncertain, and she blushed. "Fine." She shook head and composed herself, then picked up a book off her desk. "I'm going to the library to study for a while." Yang started to speak, but Ruby shot her a silencing look and jerked a thumb towards the door. _Outside, now._

Ruby dragged Yang to one of the common rooms and shoved her down into a chair. "Yang Xiao Long, whatever's cooking in that head of yours, drop it. No interfering, no helping things along, no romantic gestures, nada. We are going to leave them alone. If you do one thing that they don't ask you to do, _I will shave your head bald in your sleep and leave you to wake up in the pile of cut hair._ Understood?"

Yang started to object, then saw the look in Ruby's eyes. Last time Ruby had that look in her eye, Yang had found her motorcycle in pieces. It had taken forever to piece her precious Bumblebee back together. "Ruby, why-?"

"Blake and Weiss are both very lonely, Yang. I know they've both made friends here, we're two of them after all, but maybe this is something else they need. If so, they need to sort this out for themselves. But they would make a cute couple, don't you think?"

Yang shook her head. There Ruby was again, being smarter than Yang despite being her baby sis. "Okay. I'll stay out of it. Although I think you might want to go check on Blake. Weiss pretty much bullied her into asking for that date. I'm not sure Blake was ready to go that far."

"Yeah." Ruby chewed her lip. "I am kinda wondering what was up with that."

Ruby slipped back into their dorm room to find Blake curled up on her bed, knees up against her chest. "You okay, Blake?"

"I can't believe I did that. I can't believe I asked her out on a date."

"She did kinda push you into it. If you don't want to go-"

"That's just it! I wanted to ask her, I was just terrified to. The last time I told somebody how I felt around them, it... didn't go well."

"Adam."

Blake nodded. "I was blinded to his flaws. He used my feelings for him to manipulate me, trying to turn me into a monster like him."

"But you pulled back. Left the White Fang and decided to become a Huntress, to help people."

"I thought I was helping when I was part of the White Fang, too."

"Maybe you were, in a way. Some people think they can push Faunus around, that you'll just put up with it. I'm not saying the White Fang is right, and I don't like most of the things they do, but they've made it so that people can't ignore how Faunus are treated anymore." Ruby sat down next to Blake and sighed. "But where I think they're going wrong is confusing fear with respect. You can make people fear you, by threatening their lives, or the things they hold dear, but you can't make them respect you. And peace, lasting peace, can't be built on fear because fear doesn't last. There's got to be respect between human and Faunus for lasting peace."

"H-How do we do that?"

"One piece at a time. Like you and Weiss being teammates, despite where you both came from."

"Or me asking her out on a date."

"And her accepting. There's no magic spell for peace between human and Faunus, no quick fix, just time and hard work."

* * *

Saturday came all too soon, and at the same time, took forever to arrive. Weiss stood waiting at the port for Blake. She sighed, running her fingers through her hair. Weiss wasn't used to having her hair loose in public, and it felt odd. Not bad, just different. She definitely wouldn't want to fight without tying it back though. She'd stuffed a scrunchie in a pocket for just such an occasion. It wasn't the tiara she usually wore to contain her ponytail, but it would do in a pinch.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Blake stood there in a purple and black dress that made Weiss gulp.

"N-no bother. You look amazing. I don't think I've seen you in a dress before."

"Thanks. I've been saving this for a special occasion. "

"Then it pleases me that you wore it for me." Something caught Weiss's eye. "You're not wearing your bow."

"Nope. I thought I'd try walking around without it, at least to the port. I think the only person that noticed was Neptune. He started to say something but Sun elbowed him in the gut." Blake shook her head. Sun Wukong was a problem she was going to have to deal with sooner or later, but not now. Now was about Weiss.

After arriving in Vale, the pair sat down in the cafe Blake had chosen for lunch. "I haven't eaten here before, " Weiss commented as she scanned the menu.

"It's not as fancy as some places, but the food's great. Their seafood is wonderful." Blake was practically drooling as she checked out the chef's special for the day.

"You and fish, of course." Weiss was smiling, but it was a sad sort of smile. "Is something wrong, Weiss?"

Weiss arranged her napkin in her lap with a fussy sort of precision, then sipped her coffee. "Not wrong, exactly, I'm just... second-guessing my motivations." She sighed. "I know I pushed you into asking me out, and I apologize for that. But now I find myself questioning why I did so, and some of the possibilities that come to mind bother me."

"If you didn't want to-"

"Wanting to is not the problem. Why I wanted to is." Weiss sat for a moment, then looked Blake in the eye, "I feel the need to confide in you something that is personal and private. I am... bisexual, but prefer women to men. I realized this when I was about fourteen when I met my first girlfriend.

"Her name was Liana. We met at the primary combat school I was attending prior to attending Beacon. Within weeks, we were head over heels for each other. We tried to be discrete, but in the end, my father found out. He was furious, demanding that I break it off. Being rather smitten, I refused utterly. Liana paid for my defiance.

"Within a month, my father had ruined her family. Liana was forced to quit school in disgrace. We tried to keep in touch, but she became increasingly despondent. The last time I tried to contact her..." Weiss closed her eyes, trying to fight back the tears, "The last time I tried to contact her, Liana's mother answered. Liana had committed suicide. An overdose of her mother's sleeping pills. The note she left said, 'I still love you, Weiss.' Her family naturally blamed me."

"It wasn't your fault, Weiss."

"But I felt responsible. If I hadn't defied my father, if I hadn't pursued a relationship with her, Liana might still have been alive. So I put that part of myself away, locked it in a box. I swore I'd never care about anyone again, so that I'd never hurt them.

"And then you told me how you felt about me, and the box opened a crack. Just enough that I could see Liana inside. You remind me of her a great deal, Blake. So I find myself wondering if I said yes because of you, or because of her." Weiss stood, tears starting to roll down her cheeks. "This-this was a mistake. I should go. I'm sorry, Blake." Before Blake could respond, Weiss was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Ruby didn't know what had happened on Blake and Weiss's date Saturday, but it was obvious that it had gone badly. Blake had returned first and laid on the bed sobbing for hours. When Ruby had tried to talk to her, Blake had snarled at her to go away and thrown a coffee mug at her. Yang had fared worse with Blake; the thrown book had hit the blonde square in the face. It was still on the floor four days later, and Ruby recognized the cover; it was one of Blake's favorites. Weiss wasn't talking to anyone either. Ruby wasn't sure what time she'd gotten back, only that Wess had up and studying in their room when Ruby woke up Sunday morning.

Things hadn't gotten better, either. Blake was talking as little as possible to anyone, and not at all to Weiss. Weiss was worse; she had started Sunday out as bitchy as when they all first met and was getting crankier. She was forgetting things, spacing out in class, and starting to not make sense. Last night at dinner, she'd started chewing out another student for taking the last coffee cake. He hadn't been anywhere near the desserts; in fact, he'd been clearing his plate and there had still been plenty of coffee cake left.

Ruby had talked to Glynda Goodwitch about it, but her advice had been less than helpful. "The best thing we can do now is to give them time. Until one of them is willing to talk about what happened, there's nothing we can do."

Now it was Wednesday, and Ruby was walking behind the pair of them as they made their way to the first class of the day. And there was a new item for the 'something is off with Weiss' list: Usually, her ponytail was off-center to the left, this morning it was dead center. Weiss normally took great care with her appearance, always wanting to look her best. The last few days she had looked... not disheveled, exactly, just not as carefully made up as usual.

Ahead of them, Weiss stumbled as she turned into the classroom, collapsing halfway to the floor. Blake rushed to Weiss's side, asking "Are you all right, Weiss?" only to be pushed away. "...can't sleep..." Weiss muttered.

"Huh?"

Wess stood, steadying herself on the doorframe. "I. Can't. _Sleep_ ," she said, pronouncing each word slowly, a shaky edge in her voice. "I haven's slept since our date. Every time I close my eyes, I see you, I see _her_ , and nothing I can do helps me get any rest. So tell me what I'm supposed to do, Blake."

"You're the one who brought her up and then ran off. And maybe I don't feel like competing with your oh-so-perfect dead girlfriend!"

Weiss whirled to face Blake. "That's just it! You're not competing against her! Every time I see her, she's pushing me towards you!" Weis was stalking towards Blake with every word now, driving her backward. "So what am I supposed to do, Blake, can you tell me?"

Ruby laid a hand on Weiss's shoulder. "Come on, Weiss, let's get you to the infirmary. They can give you something to help you sleep, I'm sure."

Weiss shook off Ruby's hand with a snarl. "I don't need your help, Ruby. I'm just fine."

"No, you're not, Weiss. You're not sleeping, and it's making you crazy. You need to get some rest."

"I think I have what I need right here." Weiss shoved Blake up against the wall, kissing her, wrapping her arms around her.

Caught by surprise, Blake leaned into the kiss for a few moments. She could feel Weiss's fingers in her hair, tickling at the base of her cat ears. _Mmm... that's nice..._ Then Blake's brain caught up with what was happening and she shoved Weiss away. "What the hell, Weiss?"

Weiss stood there wobbling for a moment, said, "I feel so much better now," in a weak voice, and then collapsed on the ground. Blake and Ruby both knelt down next to her. "Is she okay?" Blake asked.

Ruby checked Weiss's pulse. "I think she's fine. Just whatever was keeping her awake finally gave. We'd better get her to the infirmary, though, just to make sure. " She glanced over at Blake, frowning. "Your bow..."

Damn. She could feel the air on her cat ears now. Looking around, she could see the ribbon clutched in Weiss's hand. "Let her keep it; I don't care right now." Weiss looked so beautiful in her sleep...

'Right. Now spill while we get her to the infirmary. What in the thousand hells happened on your date Saturday? And what dead girlfriend?"


	3. Chapter 3

The first thing Weiss felt was a numbing cold. That wasn't right; since gaining her Semblance, cold really hadn't bothered her. She was lying face-down on something cold, hard, and gritty. Weiss pushed herself up on arms that felt oddly weak and looked around her.

She was lying in a forest of dead, barren trees. Dirty snow was falling everywhere, and she could hear the wind howling through the trees. It had to be her imagination, but she swore she could hear snatches of conversation in the wind, almost as if the wind was trying to say something just below her hearing. She shivered and pushed herself to her feet. Shelter. She needed to find shelter, and soon, if it was cold enough to overwhelm her Semblance. Weiss looked around but didn't see any hint of what lay in a particular direction. Well, the best thing to do was pick a direction and stick with it. Above her, the moon was a waning crescent, just enough to pick out your way. _The lovers' moon_ , Weiss thought, then shook her head. She needed to focus on survival right now.

Weiss trudged through the trees, shivering and cursing her choice of footwear. _If I get out of here, I'm never wearing wedges again. Flats, definitely flats. Maybe boots like Ruby and Yang wear. Heels of any kind are definitely out. Don't even think about stilettoes._ She was forgetting someone; who was it? She couldn't remember. Didn't matter. It wasn't her fault she was short; she needed the heels to be able to look people in the eye, especially... especially... someone she was forgetting, someone important.

Weiss stopped for a moment, trying to remember who she was forgetting. The wind picked up immediately and she started trudging forward again, forging her way through the snow, avoiding the trees. She'd learned the hard way that the wind howled even harder the closer she got to the trees. Which didn't even make sense; shouldn't the trees act as a windbreak? Maybe it was another bizarre property of this cursed place?

Weiss kept walking, her mind lost to everything but the need to keep moving and the changes she was going to make to her wardrobe once she got home. From now on, pants, nothing but pants. Dresses and skirts were out, as much as she loved them. Nice, warm clothing in case she ever found herself somewhere cold enough to overwhelm her Semblance again. Weiss's mind was so numb she didn't even notice the clearing she stepped into until she was halfway to its center.

Standing in front of her was a stone pillar with a black-haired woman chained to it. Wiess struggled to remember the woman's name. She was important, somehow, but who was she? She was Weiss's... teammate? Yes, teammate, like Ruby and Yang! She was part of Team RWBY! And her name was... "Blake," Weiss whispered, and the air grew very still.

A chuckle filled the air, low and throaty and full of menace. "So you know who she is. But do you know who I am? Do you remember me, Weiss? Or have I been forgotten now that someone new has caught your eye?"

The voice was familiar, but Wiess couldn't place it. "Show yourself!" she shouted, reaching for her weapon out of reflex but finding only air where Myrtenaster should have been.

"You don't recognize my voice, do you? Well, it has been three years after all." A woman stepped from behind the pillar and Weiss could see Myrtenaster at her hip. "Do you remember me now, hmm?"

Weiss studied the woman. She was a bit taller than Weiss, reddish-brown hair in a pageboy cut, and wearing a brown bodysuit that left little to the imagination. In fact, she reminded Weiss of... "Liana," she breathed.

"So you do remember me after all. Good. Do you remember what we meant to each other, what we promised each other? Do you remember our first kiss? The first time we said we loved each other?" Liana's face hardened into a scowl. "Do you remember what your father did when he found out about us? How he ruined my family? Do you remember me killing myself? The note I left for you?"

"Stop it!" Weiss shouted. "This isn't like you! The Liana I knew was never cruel like this!"

"Dying changes a person. Being forgotten as soon as someone new comes into your life does that too. Jealousy is such a bitter, petty thing, really, but it's all I have right now. Still, I can't fault your taste." Liana ran a finger up the side of Blake's face over her hair to her cat ears. "As I recall, you have a thing for ears. And now you've found a girl with two sets of ears. The second set is so charming, too."

"Don't. You. Touch. Her." Weiss was seething now.

Liana turned to give Weiss a wicked grin. "Or what? You'll attack me? No dust, no glyphs, and where's your weapon? Oh wait, I've got it. I think you've got enough sense to know a lost cause when you see it. Leave, and forget about her. Like you forgot about me."

That was it; Weiss snapped, charging Liana. "HOW DARE YOU?! I NEVER FORGOT YOU!"

Laughing, Liana drew Myrtenaster and fired off a blast of cold at Weiss, knocking her flying. "Never? What was that date all about, then?"

Weiss rolled to her feet, breathing hard. "Liana, stop this. I never forgot you. I cried myself to sleep for months after you died. I still..." She reached for the heart-shaped locket she wore, only to find it gone. "It's gone! It was the only thing I had left to remember you by and it's gone now." Weiss collapsed to her knees. "Fine. Do whatever you want to me, but let Blake go. She's innocent in all of this."

Liana put a finger to her chin, pretending to consider this, then shook her head. "No, too easy. I want you to _suffer_ for what you've done. In fact, let's make a game of this. If you want your precious Blake back, you'll have to rescue her. Be her knight in shining armor. Or not. Your choice." Liana undid the manacles holding Blake to the pillar and lifted her on her shoulder. "Don't keep me waiting, Weiss." And with that, she leaped backward and was gone.

She sat there in shock for a while. What the hell was going on here? Why was Liana acting like this? The girl Weiss knew had been bright and sunny and cheerful, a wonderful counterpoint to Weiss's tendency to be on the glum and cranky side. She had to get to the bottom of this and rescue Blake. And to do that, she had to find where Liana had gone. Weiss struggled to her feet and set off in the direction Liana had disappeared. _A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step._

On the far side of the clearing, Weiss found a stone archway with a sword etched into the capstone framing a flagstone path. As good a destination as any. She walked down the path for a while until she noticed a red-cloaked goblin-like creature swinging through the trees next to her. "Uh, hello," Weiss stammered.

"Crazy lady," the creature chirped.

"Yes, I'm looking for the crazy lady! Can you help me find her?"

It pointed at her. "Crazy lady."

"No, not me, I'm looking for the other crazy lady. Do you know where she went?" The creature shrugged and Weiss turned back down the path, sighing. So much for getting some help. It took a few minutes for Weiss to realize the creature was following her, humming a disjointed tune that hovered on the edge of Weiss's memory. "Dangerous," it chirped again.

"Yes, she's dangerous. But I have to rescue my friend. Liana has her." Her shiver this time had nothing to do with being cold. "I... turned Liana into what she is now, so I'm responsible for this."

The goblin shook its head and pointed down the path. "Dangerous. Sword."

"I don't understand." It just swayed back and forth, humming that same tune. Weiss turned and continued down the path, the goblin following. At least she had company now.

As she walked, ruins began to appear among the trees. What had this place once been? The ruins looked familiar somehow. The path ended at another clearing, and Weiss gasped. Now she knew where she was, if not why. This was Bastion Academy, the primary combat school she'd attended before Beacon, where she'd met Liana.

She stood at the edge of the Southern Plaza, an outdoor training area where students would often spar when weather permitted. It was ringed with stone statues holding various weapons looking down on the students.

Now it was a frozen wasteland, covered in ice and snow. Instead of the large fountain in the middle, she could see an ice sculpture of a woman, holding a sword in its outstretched hands. "A weapon," Weiss whispered. Okay, it wasn't a rapier, but anything beat going up against Liana bare-handed again.

"Sword," the goblin chirped.

"Yes, it's a sword, and I need a weapon." Weiss strode across the plaza, feeling a renewed confidence. With a weapon in hand, everything would be much easier.

As she reached up to take the sword, a booming voice rolled across the plaza. _ **"HOLD. WHO IS IT THAT TAKES UP THE PATH OF THE SWORD?"**_

Weiss looked around, but couldn't see a source for the voice. "M-Me, Weiss Schnee, sir, ma'am, whichever you happen to be."

The ice sculpture turned to regard Weiss, its eyes glowing now. _ **"BE WARNED, WEISS SCHNEE. CIVILIZATION MUST BE PROTECTED FROM THE BARBARIANS AND THE DARKNESS, BUT TO TAKE UP THE SWORD IS TO BECOME THE BARBARIAN. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"**_

"I-I think so." Weiss took a deep breath. "You have to be willing to fight right?"

" _ **THAT IS NOT ALL."**_ Another statue spoke now, this one of an armored knight. _ **"TO TAKE UP THE SWORD IS TO CHOOSE A LIFE OF STRUGGLE AND STRIFE. IT IS TO KNOW THAT YOUR LAST BREATH, THE LAST BEAT OF YOUR HEART, MAY BE GIVEN IN VAIN. YOU MAY BREATHE YOUR LAST KNOWING YOU HAVE FAILED THOSE WHO NEEDED YOU."**_

"I know that. I accepted it when I chose to become a Huntress."

" _ **WHY?"**_ This time the voice came from a statue of a robed woman. _ **"WHY DOES A GIRL WHO HAS WANTED FOR NOTHING IN HER LIFE CHOOSE THE PATH OF THE SWORD? EVERY WHIM YOU HAVE EVER HAD HAS BEEN GRANTED, YET YOU CHOOSE A PATH OF BLOOD AND PAIN AND DEATH. WHY?"**_

"Because once upon a time, the Schnee name meant something besides greed, and it will again if I have anything to say about it! The Schnee legacy is mine to reclaim, as a Huntress!"

" _ **SO YOU FIGHT FOR YOUR NAME. IS THAT ALL?"**_

"No! I fight for my teammates! I fight for people who can't fight! I train so I can fight to help people, to protect them! "

" _ **THEN FIGHT."**_ Weiss felt the blow coming from behind her, leaping out of the way. She whirled around to see a creature that resembled a horrific amalgamation of different types of Grimm, covered in a mish-mash of armor.

"There's no way I can fight that without a weapon!"

" _ **THEN DIE. FAIL SOMEONE WHO IS COUNTING ON YOU NOW, AND SAVE OTHERS THE PAIN OF DEPENDING ON YOU LATER."**_

"To hell with that!" She turned and ran toward the statue holding the sword. A howling cold wind picked up when she got close.

_**"THE SWORD IS NOT YOURS TO CLAIM."** _

"No, it's mine to take!" Weiss fought her way through the wind toward the statue. "You said I've had everything I ever wanted given to me? That's a load of crap! I had to train, hard, to become a Huntress! My own father turned a Gigas loose on me to stop me! My family's money paid for my training, my weapon, but I had to _earn_ my skills!" The hilt was just out of reach... _"I AM WEISS SCHNEE, AND I WILL NOT FALL HERE! MY TEAMMATE NEEDS ME_ _AND I WILL NOT FAIL HER!"_ Weiss's hand closed on the sword's hilt and she spun around to face the monster, bringing the sword up to block as it took a swipe at her. She tumbled backward, riding the fury of the storm instead of fighting it, giving her a moment to assess the sword. It was a spatha, so heavier and shorter than her rapier. Less of a precision weapon, can be used to slash or stab. Weiss caught her breath for a moment, then went on the attack, beating the creature back inch by inch, knocking its blows out of the way or whirling out of the way. Finally, she found an opening and slid the spatha between two of the armor plates killing it.

The wind subsided as Weiss sank to her knees. _ **"SO YOU WILL FIGHT?"**_

"Yes." She fought her way back to her feet and turned to face the ice sculpture. "I will fight, and I will not fail my teammate."

" _ **DO YOU TAKE UP THE PATH OF THE SWORD OF YOUR OWN FREE WILL? ACCEPTING ALL THAT IT ENTAILS?"**_

"Yes."

" _ **GO THEN, AND RESCUE YOUR TEAMMATE. FIGHT FOR HER, AS SHE WOULD FIGHT FOR YOU."**_ The sculpture exploded in a spray of icy shards, and Weiss covered her eyes. When she looked again, there was a sword belt where the statue had stood.

"At least it left me something worth taking." "Sword?" the goblin chirped as it hopped over.

"Yes, I have a sword, dolt. And where were you when I needed help?"

"Sword," the creature burbled as it watched her don the belt and sheath the spatha. "Brave," it opined as she set out towards the center of campus.

* * *

Ozpin's desk chimed. "Sir, it's Jacques Schnee. He's asking to speak to you personally."

He sighed. This was a call he expected but had hoped to avoid. Ozpin assumed that Jacques Schnee was keeping tabs on his daughter while she was at Beacon, but there were events involving Weiss Schnee that he was hoping to keep from her father's attention. "Put him through. Mister Schnee, I'm a very busy man. What is it that you want so I can make you go away?"

"You can tell me why in the hells my daughter is in your infirmary? What sort of school are you running, Ozpin?"

"I wasn't aware your daughter was in the infirmary. Let me check." In reality, Ozpin was fully aware of Weiss's presence in the infirmary, and, more importantly, why she was there. "Ah, here it is. According to her medical records, she was acting irrationally, yelling at one of her teammates and complaining about not having been able to sleep for several days. Then she passed out, into what appears to be a normal sleep." He shrugged. "From what I see here, it seems to be a case of stress-induced insomnia. Your daughter pushes herself very hard, on top of the normal stress faced by all the students here. I think when she wakes, I'll recommend she take things a little easier for a while. Working hard is all well and good, but relieving stress is important as well."

"You're sure that's all it is?"

"I'm no doctor"-a blatant lie, he had a great deal of medical knowledge-"but that's how this reads to me. I'll make sure you're contacted if things change."

After Jacque Schnee hung up, muttering vague threats, Ozpin called Glynda Goodwitch. "Any more information about Weiss Schnee? I just fielded an angry call from her father. Snarled concern, vague threats, that sort of thing."

"The only new information concerns this 'Liana' she mentioned. I believe I have located the classmate in question. Sending you the file now."

He scanned the file. "Interesting," he muttered. "Contact me immediately if things change. I have to get back to running this madhouse."


End file.
